Can you believe it’s already July? I sure can’t! Just yesterday it felt like January. OK, I live in Wisconsin. It really WAS winter yesterday.
July means it’s mid-year time, and that means it’s time to look at what you’ve accomplished for the year. If your shop runs on a calendar year, it’s time for you to review what you’ve already done (and what you need to do in the next six months) so you can make the necessary adjustments to an even more successful second half of the year.
If you’re a manager, you also have to review what your team has done for the year. Here are a few things to look at that will help make this as effective, and efficient, as possible.
Meeting Preparation: I recommend scheduling 45 minutes or more a person for the actual conversation, with at least that long for preparation, though you may not need it all. I also recommend doing this off-site or in a sound proof room so others don’t hear your conversation. Lastly, I recommend NOT rescheduling these, no matter how busy you are, as rescheduling sends the message to your team that they are not as important as anything else.
Let’s get started on what goes into a simple mid-year review discussion:
You can do this in any word processing program, or on a blank sheet of paper. It’s up to you. Make sure however you do it you also make a copy to give to your employee.
First things first – Start by putting the employee’s name at the top of the form, and the date of the discussion, as well as the location. You may need this later if you have any disciplinary action to take or as part of a promotion later on.
Attendance Review – Did they show up to work on time, and in uniform. If they didn’t, did you talk to them about it at the time? Now is NOT the time to unload on your people for something you noticed in February but forgot to bring up until now. Chances are, they don’t remember what they did last week, much less several months ago. Make a point for you to talk about things as they happen for the second half of the year. Include any discussions you’ve had more than twice as a pattern. Life happens to everyone, just with differing frequency.
Goals Review – If you set any goals for your team or individuals (or for yourself), review these goals. Show them what could be, and show them how they can play a part in getting there. Be objective, share numbers as much as possible, and thank them for the progress they helped your shop make. If you exceeded goals, share that, and thank them for their work. Everyone plays a part in goals, and connecting their goals to the company goals, even if it’s just coming to work on time every day with a smile on their face, can make a big difference in your shop’s long term success.
Opportunities for Improvement Review – Hopefully you can leave this part blank, but I’d bet everyone on your team has at least one thing they can improve upon. Add it here, but don’t pile on unless you want to fire and/or demoralize the employee you’ve giving this to. Just like in the attendance area, only insert things you’ve actually talked to the employee
Highlights Review – Admit it: Every one who’s still working for you did something right in the last 6 months. No matter how much crap they might have pulled, or how much they frustrated you, they did something right. Close your mid-year conversation with this, and let them know you’re looking forward to more positive stuff from them in the next 6 months. You know they have what it takes to do the job right or you’d have never hired them in the first place. Focus on them achieving what you first saw in them, and tell them how they can get there.
Next Steps – What do you see is next for this person? Do you see more of the same job, only at a higher quality with more output? Or do you see a possible promotion, if they meet a few other criteria. Whatever you see, share it with the person in a positive way, looking forward to what you see. If their performance totally sucked for the first half of the year, and you’ve done a good job of documenting it (paperwork equals less lawsuits, trust me!), let them know where they stand.
Overall Sentiment Review – Look at the above sections. Was it mostly positive? Mostly negative? Give an overall sentiment here at the bottom, along with things to continue to do (to keep on the right path) or things to stop doing (to get back on the right path). Include examples, and any training you suggest might be helpful in doing things as you want them to. It could be something as simple as partnering up with someone to learn to do something a new way, or something as complex as going and getting a new certification. Include only what you think is realistic for the next 6 months, not for the rest of their career.
Leave space on the sheet for questions – Hopefully you get a chance to step through this with your employee face to face. At that meeting, leave time to give your employee a chance to ask questions, to clarify what is unclear, and to provide insight into anything they feel is important.
Last but not least, include names, a signature line and a date – This helps you out later when you need to review this or to remember when you had the conversation.
If your shop doesn’t require formal reviews, I’d encourage you to start them with your team this year. Focus on these areas, and you’ll have a much happier team, which will lead to happier customers, which will lead to increased profitability, which means more good stuff in everyone’s wallet!
If you don’t have a manager that’s doing this for you, do it for yourself. Go through each of these areas, and be honest with yourself. Push yourself to do better the next six months, and if you’re comfortable, share it with your manager when you have the chance. He’ll be surprised that you took the initiative, and may steal the idea for the rest of your team, or better yet, have you talk to everyone about doing this for themselves, making everyone more productive and moving in the same direction.
If you do this every 6 months, you’ll have a happier, more focused, and hopefully more productive team and shop!
To make it easier for you, I’ve made this into a downloadable form, just for you. Click to download the Mid-Year Review Form.